CLAIM: There was never a nation called “Palestine” / “Palestine” does not exist.
RATING:
False
The region of Palestine has existed for thousands of years on ancient maps and in ancient writings. It used to be referred to as Paleistine, Palestina, and other similar variations.
Arabs have lived in this region for thousands of years, such as the Nabatean Empire going as far back as around 300 BCE. Arabs in the region may not have identified as “Palestinians” per se until the Ottoman Empire fell apart in the early 1900s and the region of Palestine was taken over by Britain, but a name change does not in any way alter their history or underlying group identity.
According to Israeli historian Ilan Pappe, in the early 1900s, even though there was no Palestinian state, there was a clear reference to Palestine as a geographical and cultural entity (and later a political entity), which appeared on maps of the world as a distinct "country", with a "unifying sense of belonging", their own major dialect, and their own customs, folklore, and rituals. Without the appearance of Zionism, Pappe writes, "Palestine would probably have gone the same way as Lebanon, Jordan, or Syria and embraced a process of modernization and growth."
In November 1988, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) unilaterally declared the new independent State of Palestine, consisting of Gaza and the West Bank. The State of Palestine has since been recognized by over 145 UN member states. This is much the same process Israel undertook when it unilaterally declared itself as a new independent state in May 1948, and was then recognized by numerous established states.
Source: The Myth that Palestinians are Arabs that arrived in the 7th century
Source: Ten Myths about Israel (2017) by Ilan Pappe, pp.7-9.
One reply on “Israel-Palestine Mega Fact Check!”
Keep trying to invent history. The palis didn’t exist until the mid 1960s.
One other fun fact – every group, every political organization, and every government that has ever tried to destroy the Jews has been destroyed. Fun fact #2 Israel has never been stronger.